1. Field
This invention relates to electrical clamps and, more particularly, electrical clamps suitable for use with jumper cables for attachment to automotive batteries.
2. Description of the Prior Art
One of the most common incapacitating maladies affecting automobiles is the occurrence of a dead battery. While this condition frequently requires replacement of the automobile's battery, the most immediate solution is to start the automobile with the aid of a second car's fully charged battery, the charged battery being connected to the dead battery by means of jumper cables.
Typically, jumper cables consist of a pair of insulated electrical cables with a conductive clamp secured to each end. Electrical clamps utilized for this purpose usually consists of spring loaded alligator type clamps having a pair of jaws which open when the two handles are squeezed together and close when the handles are released.
For many years automotive batteries contained two terminals, one positive and one negative, which consisted of two relatively large conductive posts extending from the top of the battery; such posts are referred to herein as "top-mounted" posts or terminals. These "top-mounted" posts or terminals are generally connected to a car's electrical system by means of conventional battery clamps which substantially surround the terminals, leaving only the top exposed. Jumper cable clamps should be large enough to grasp the battery clamps surrounding the top-mounted terminals, so that the battery clamps need not be removed to jump start the car.
In recent years, however, it has become quite common for automotive batteries to have the posts extending from the side, or "side-mounted" terminals. In most, if not all, cases, side-mounted terminals are considerably smaller than top-mounted terminals and do not require the use of conventional battery clamps for connection to a car's electrical system. These small, side-mounted terminals are, therefore, difficult to grasp with the relatively large jaws of conventional jumper cable clamps.
The problem with conventional jumper cable clamps, caused primarily by the mismatched sizes of the jaws and the terminals, is exascerbated by the typically bulky handles used on the clamps and the angle of engagement. Due to the efficient packaging of most modern engine compartments, there is seldom sufficient room to attach the front portion of a jumper cable clamp to a side-mounted terminal. Consequently, rather than approaching the terminal directly from the side of the battery, the user must approach the terminal from the top of the battery and grasp the terminal with the side of the clamp's jaws. This is frequently a difficult task, given limitations in working space and vision, especially if the task is attempted in the dark. Furthermore, since the cables naturally tend to pull on the extreme end of one handle, the affected handle will frequently rest against the battery case as a fulcrum and pry the jaws off of the terminal. In short, conventional jumper cable clamps are difficult to secure to side-mounted battery terminals and, once secured, frequently disengage themselves accidentally.
In consideration of the problems outlined above, it is an object of the present invention to provide an electrical clamp suitable for use with automotive jumper cables and adapted to accommodate side-mounted battery terminals, and preferably either side-mounted or top-mounted terminals. It is a further object of this invention to provide an electrical clamp which can be simply and quickly connected to, and disconnected from, an automotive battery, requiring the use of only one hand and no additional tools.